Things You Must Know Before Traveling To Nepal

Nepal is a unique land starting from 56m up to the highest peak of the world. People perceive Nepal as a mountainous land ideal for traveling to go on a trek. But when you travel to these hidden lands, Nepal can really dazzle you. Numerous hill stations, various fast flowing rivers, unique civilization, and 122 different languages, variety in geography within approximately 128 kms wide and 880 kms long boundary make the country purely magical.

Traveling in Nepal is always easy if you know what to expect from the visit. The fairly smaller boundary of Nepal offers a huge possibilities in terms of variety. From Tigers in Plane lands to Show leopards in the mountains, the variety in wildlife of Nepal is beyond explanation. Likewise, romantic hill stations, good weather, and easy transportation makes it more appealing. So, let’s talk about things you should know for your Nepal tour.

Geography

Located in the Tibetan Plateau, Nepal has a very unique landscape and its unique geography speaks for itself. World’s tallest mountains to deepest valleys, glacier lakes to fast flowing rivers, plain paddy fields to barren mountain deserts, the nation encloses various geographical landscapes enclosed in between a couple of hundred kilometers.

The country is enclosed in the north by the great Himalayan range, east and west by the mighty Mechi and Mahakali rivers, along with plain lands with dense forest in the south. Nepal is a beautiful nation with a very unique geography. So, when you travel Nepal, you travel to a nation with three distinct Geographic traits; Terai, Hilly and Himalayan within some 250 Kilometers distance.

Temperature

Nepal experiences three different temperature conditions due to the geographic variations. As Nepal is a country with different elevation; every 1,000 meters of altitude rise in Nepal, the average temperature drops by 6°C.The average temperature of Nepal ranges from freezing zero to 40 degree Celsius.

Terai is the lower plain in Nepal which occupies about 23.1% of Nepal's land area in the South. The temperature in the Terai region can rise up to 38 degrees. So, Terai is the hottest region in Nepal.

Nepal can be termed as a hilly country because the largest part of this nation is hills. Hills cover a total 45% of its land. The Temperature in the Hills is usually moderate. In the Hills, Nepal is reasonably colder as the elevation increases. Here, the temperature is moderate and rises up to 28 degrees starting from 2 degree Celsius.

Total 15% of Nepalese land is in the mountain region. The Temperature in Mountain can go up to 15 degrees and in extreme winters, they go down upto -20 degrees.

Weather

The natural beauty in the various parts of Nepal explains its worth on its own. The weather conditions in Nepal aren't as harsh compared to other parts of the world. In Every season, there are strong chances that you will see a little contrast. 

In northern Nepal, summers aren’t hot and winters are cold. While in the south, summers are hot and winters are mild to cold. Though Nepal experiences five seasons, spring, summer, monsoon, autumn and winter. Weather conditions vary every 100 Kilometers. There are places in many hilly regions where you see tropical vegetation and subtropical vegetation growing in a single hill due to elevation difference.

Best Season to visit Nepal

The best time to visit Nepal is between October and December, when the skies are clear and the scenery is breathtaking. Until April, the weather remains dry with temperatures varying by region. January and February can be bitterly cold, especially at night, and temperature at some alpine zones decreases below zero degree Celsius.

However, with proper arrangements and precautions, people can travel to Nepal in all four seasons. There are easy trails that you can follow even in the hot rainy season. So, you shouldn’t worry less about the best traveling season and more about gear and preparation while traveling to Nepal.

Traveling Budget in Nepal

Travel budget totally depends on the traveler’s mentality. Even if a person travels to the cheapest destination, his spending habits can create a real problem for him. However, Nepal’s image in the world community is unquestionably a low-cost destination.

It is one of the most affordable countries you can ever visit. In general, lodging is inexpensive and travelers have a wide range of options in hotels, homestays, hostels, dorms, and guesthouses.

The air fair and entry tickets to various locations are as low as one dollar to thirty dollars. Likewise, there are budget gift shops and souvenir shops where you can buy exceptionally beautiful goodies at a lower rate. So, yes! Nepal is a budget friendly destination even for the people willing to spend heavily.

Best places to visit in Nepal

Nepal is a very scenic, culturally rich, and religiously holy destination. If you are traveling to Nepal, here are 10 best destinations that you should travel to. These destinations will surely make your Nepal tour memorable. Let’s start the list;

Kathmandu

Region: Hilly

Minimum temperature: Lowers up to 2 °C  in December

Maximum temperature: Rises up to 30 °C in June

Best season to travel: All round the year

Major Attractions:

• Basantapur, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur Palaces for history and Architecture
• Pashupatinath, Swayambhunath and Boudhanath Stupa
• Thamel (for Nightlife)
• Visit Zoo and Fun Park with kids
• Newari Restaurants for food
• Short hikes
• Motorcycle Ride
• Mountain Flight

Nagarkot

Region: Hilly

Minimum temperature: Lower up to 3 to 4 °C in December and January 

Maximum Temperature: Rises up to 30 °C in July

Best Season To Travel: All round the year

Major Attractions:

• Sunrise
• Nagarkot Viewpoint
• Mountain panorama and Landscapes
• Kalamashi Dam and Telkot village
• Horse Riding and Bird Watching
• Cycling downhill
• Short Hikes

Daman

Region: Hilly

Minimum temperature: Drops upto 0 °C at night in December

Maximum temperature: Rises up to 34 °C in June

Best season to travel: Autumn and Winter (October to February for SnowFall)

Major Attractions:

• Beautiful village
• View Tower
• Snowfall
• Several small meditation hubs
• Silent and adorable surroundings
• Cycling to Tistung and Palung

Pokhara

Region: Hilly

Minimum temperature: Lowers up to 7.1 °C in December

Maximum temperature: Rises up to 30.6 °C in July

Best season to travel: Autumn (September to November) and Spring(February to May)

Major Attractions:

• Lakeside
• Tibetan Refugee Camp
• Old Pokhara
• Seti Gorge
• Devi's Fall
• Mountain Museum, three caves, and go fishing with children
• World Peace Pagoda
• Paragliding, Zipline, and Bungy at Sarangkot
• Ultralight flight
• Rafting in The Lukewarm Seti-Gandaki River
• Short Hikes
• Lakes

Chitwan

Region: Terai

Minimum temperature: Lowers upto 8.3 °C in December

Maximum temperature: Rises up to 33 °C in July

Best season to travel: Autumn(September to November)

Major Attractions:

• Wildlife
• Jeep and Elephant safari
• Jungle Walk and Bird Watching
• Tharu Village and their culture
• 20000 Lakes Tour
• Canoe Rides In Rapti
• Elephant and Crocodile Breeding Facility
• Jalbire Waterfall

Lumbini

Region: Terai

Minimum temperature: Lowers up to 9 °C in January

Max temperature in Summer: Rises up to 37 °C in June

Best season to travel: All round the year

Major Attractions:

• Maya Devi Garden
• Eternal Peace Flame
• Museums
• World peace pagoda
• Monasteries built by different countries
• Dharma swami Maharaja
• Lumbini Crane Sanctuary

Mustang

Region: Himalayan

Minimum temperature: Drops up to -25 °C at night in December

Maximum temperature in Summer: Rises up to 32 °C in June

Best season to travel: All round the year

Major Attractions:

• Muktinath for Pilgrim Visit
• Kagbeni Cultural tour
• Jomsom
• Apple Farms and Brandy in Marpha Village
• Thakali food
• Kali Gandaki river
• World's deepest Gorge
• Mountain view
• Road trip and motorbike riding

Everest Region

Region:  Himalayan

Minimum temperature: Everest Base Camp gets up to -20 °C in January 

Max temperature in Summer: Rises up to 19 °C in July

Best season to travel: Autumn (September to November) and Spring (March to May)

Major Attractions

• Everest Base Camp
• Trekking and Expedition
• Kala Patthar
• Khumbu glacier
• Everest massif and Ama Dablam
• Sherpa villages and their culture
• Diverse National Park
• Tengboche Monastery
• Panoramic view of Himalayas
• High Passes
• Gokyo Lake
• Khumjung Village
• Namche Bazaar

Annapurna Region

Region: Himalayan

Minimum temperature: Lower up to -2 °C in December

Maximum temperature: Rises up to 13 °C in June 

Best season to travel: Spring (March to May) and Autumn (September to November)

Major Attractions:

• Diverse ethnic culture
• Natural diversity of flora and fauna
• Pristine lakes
• Annapurna Base Camp
• Thorong-La Pass
• Temple and monasteries

Langtang Region

Region:  Himalayan

Minimum temperature: Lower up to -3 °C in January

Maximum temperature: Rises up to 16 °C in June 

Best season to travel: Spring (Februrary to April) and Autumn (mid-September to mid-December)

Major Attractions:

• First Himalayan national park - Langtang National Park
• Nearest viewpoint of different mountain ranges over 7000m
• Tibetian culture
• Kyanjing Gompa, GosainKunda, Tsergori (for Pilgrim Visits)
• Langtang Lirung Glacier

As a whole, the thing that you should consider while traveling Nepal is its geographic variation. And must know that the temperature varies at the same season in different regions. Here are only 10 places to visit but Nepal offers many other destinations. And people can travel Nepal all round the year. Nepal offers something different in different seasons.